Chapter I (continued)
As
to the
cause of his death, excepting his ripe old age, the writer could get no
information.
George
Tope was married twice. No person nor tombstone, that we have ever
found, exists to show the grave of his first wife. But Barbary McQueen
and others have told me that her maiden name was Catharine Straddler,
and, from other incidents, they must have been married in Pennsylvania.
Her body was evidently interred somewhere in Jefferson
County Ohio.
His
second wife's maiden name was Elizabeth Bower. She was buried by the
side of her husband, having died, according to the tombstone, on May 7,
1855, --- aged about 70 years. Owning to some cause, which has never
been explained to the writer, several years before her death she became
weak-minded, and remained so until her death. It was
necessary to keep her confined a portion of the time.
One
of our notes, given us by someone whom we do not now remember, says the
Mrs. Elizabeth Tope was a sister of Barney Bower who built a mill at
Bowerston, and who was the grand-father of Barney Bower that lives near
New Hagerstown now, and that he was as Dutch (German) as sauer kraut.
Other facts confirm this statement, and show that the
Topes and the large family of Bowers, many of whom live in Bowerston
and vicinity yet, are thus connected by marriage. This town, in which
the writer has the pleasure of living, was named after the
Bowers. By further investigation we learn that the Barney (proper name
Bernhard) Bower referred to emigrated from near old Hagerstown,
Maryland, in 1807, and settled near Bowerston on the farm now
owned by Samuel Crawford. He built the firs flour mill in all this
country, and started it in about the year of 1812. This was a great
milling place in those days.
We
have had some curiosity to know how the acquaintance that led to this
marriage was formed. Circumstances indicate that the Topes and Bowers
were acquainted in Maryland and Pennsylvania. Figures and facts, to be
subsequently stated, show that George Tope and Miss Bower were married
while he lived in Jefferson County, at least as early as
1804, when she was about 19 years of age. This was three years before
the Bower family came into this part. We must infer, therefore, that
Miss Bower came into Ohio with the Topes or some other
people at an earlier date, or else Mr. Tope went back to Maryland and
wedded her there.
George
Tope was the father of twenty-four children, --- twelve by each wife.
Some of these are twins;---two sets of twins by the first wife and
two sets by the second, if we have understood our informants correctly.
Those who did not die in early infancy are as follows, in order of
births: First wife; Susie, Lizzie, John, George, Lucretia,
Sally and Polly (twins), Steven and Jacob (twins); second wife; Barbary
(twin), Katie, Lydia and Abram (twins, the latter lived only 9 months),
Malinda, William, Levi, Eli, Joseph, Hiram, Maria. Of
these, all are known to be dead, except it might be William, Levi and
Maria.
p. 11
From The
text above is from History
of the Tope Family, by Melancthon
Tope, 1896, revised by A. D. Maddux, Copyright ©
1981, 1989 (used with
permission)
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